How to Prepare for an Exceptional Ultra-Cycling Performance

I’m often made fun of for my attention to details when it comes to preparing for ultra-cycling.

I admit it… I’m meticulous squared.

Take tyres.

I can talk about tyres for hours. It’s a great subject. As we speak, I have tyres curing in my linen cupboard for the next two seasons.

Apparently, not everyone agrees about my interest in tyres, or even my choice of tyres.

But consider this.

My tyre is the only connection I have to the road.

A few millimetres of rubber.

And in Race Across America, that tiny contact patch must carry me for more than 3,000 miles across multiple road surfaces, through debris, heat, impact and fatigue.

So, how it rolls matters.

The construction, pressure choice, road surface and preparation matter.

Marginal gains are marginal

My team knows to check my tyre pressures at least twice a day in a multi-day event.

Heat, terrain and environment all impact the pressure and, if it’s not addressed, it can feel like rolling through molasses.

Marginal gains are marginal in shorter races, like 12 hours.

Marginal gains aren’t marginal anymore when you stack 12 hours on top of each other for days on end.

When you care about something deeply, the details matter.

Not just the big ones.

The small ones that nobody else notices. The things that might seem excessive until you discover that they’re the difference between being prepared and simply hoping things go well.

And this applies far beyond tyres.

A rider and bike stopped on the side of a road with a mechanical gives every other competitor a distance advantage that your rider must take back by exerting more wattage.

Wattage that is limited and precious.

Preparing for ultra-cycling

Exceptional performance comes from understanding that every detail, in every role, contributes to the quality of forward.

And when your job as a rider and team is – forward – you’d better look at all the things that contribute to that or obstruct it.

So, if you really care about something, be meticulous.

Understand the details.

Prepare properly.

And surround yourself with people who care just as much.

That’s where exceptional comes from.

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The details matter. So does having someone in your corner who knows what matters most.

If you’re preparing for your next ultra-cycling challenge, let’s talk about how I can help you prepare properly.